High Tide in Alabama

low tide in Miami

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Miami Dolphins fans may find it ironic that Nick Saban used the words "trust,'' "principles'' and "values'' during his introductory news conference Thursday as the University of Alabama's new head coach.

Saban insisted he didn't mislead the Dolphins and team owner Wayne Huizenga intentionally with repeated assurances he had no interest in the job.

"I tried to protect the team by not making it a distraction for the team, and my integrity for doing that is being questioned,'' Saban said. "Other people have done this. They just say, `I have the right to change my mind.'

"So in my eyes, when I said that, it wasn't a lie. The circumstances changed, and I made a different decision. That's not lying.''

Saban, who said he loved Huizenga "as much as anybody except my own father,'' admitted he left the Dolphins "prematurely,'' but he had to follow his heart back to college football, where he brought Michigan State and LSU to national prominence.

A 40-minute interview session with three South Florida reporters also revealed the following:

Huizenga said Saban never asked for more money, but when asked whether the owner offered him a contract extension to keep him from leaving, Saban looked at his agent, Jimmy Sexton, and was told not to answer.

Saban struggled getting on the same page with the two general managers (Rick Spielman and Randy Mueller) he worked with at the Dolphins.

The reason Saban informed his assistants that he was leaving by speakerphone was because Huizenga didn't think he should return to the facility.

Saban regrets saying he was "not going to be the University of Alabama coach'' two weeks ago during a Dolphins news conference. But Saban said he feels he is a "little bit of a victim'' because there was no answer he could give that would end speculation about his coaching future.

Saban, who was wooed from the Dolphins by an eight-year, $32 million guaranteed contract, said he didn't make a final decision until Wednesday morning after spending a sleepless night mulling the offer with his wife, Terry. But Saban vacillated again after speaking on the telephone with Huizenga, who lured him away from LSU.

"When he came over to the house is kind of when [I decided],'' Saban said.

`The circumstances changed, and I made a different decision. That's not lying.'